International patent application no. PCT/AU95/00585, and its counterpart U.S. Pat. No. 5,875,533, disclose a scalpel blade remover for removing a blade from the tang of a scalpel. In use, the scalpel is inserted in, and withdrawn from, the blade remover along the same substantially straight-line path. The blade remover has a rocker block which pivots about an axis transverse to the insertion path. When the scalpel is inserted into the blade remover, the blade pushes against a distal contact surface of the rocker block, causing the rocker block to pivot. A pair of legs at the other (proximal) end of the rocker block apply a transverse force to the heel of the blade on either side of the tang, thereby lifting the heel of the blade off the tang. When the scalpel has been inserted far enough, a pawl or detent drops behind the heel of the blade. When the scalpel handle is withdrawn, the pawl or detent prevents the blade from being withdrawn, causing it to be stripped from the tang.
Although the scalpel blade remover of PCT/AU95/00585 and U.S. Pat. No. 5,875,533 operates well, and provides a safe and secure method for removing a blade from a scalpel, it is primarily suitable for use with scalpel blades and scalpel handles or tangs within a limited range of sizes and shapes.
However, scalpel blades and scalpel handles come in various shapes and sizes. It is therefore a preferred aim of the present invention to provide a scalpel blade remover which is suitable for removing a wide range of different sized blades from a wide range of different sized scalpel handles or tangs.